How can Twitter Help your Job Search

We've all heard how, thanks to Twitter, Lady Gaga advanced her career making a fortune, but is it possible that this very short message website can help the "ordinary" man find a job? You bet it is. Today great deal of business, government and nonprofit sectors depends on the effective use of social media, and the employers not only expect their candidates will be active on websites like Twitter (they'll probably even check the tweets of the serious applicants), but they are also using it to search for talent each day, posting information about new job openings, sharing the links, or recruiting those with influence in their respective field. These facts make Twitter an effective tool you can use as part of your job search strategy, and here's how:

Use Twitter's search function to search for job openings. Twitter's hash tags (the symbol "#") are actually topic headers used to make certain tweets easy to find – including it when searching job related keywords like #jobs, #hire, #careers, and adding skills, job description and location into the search mix will result in a long list of tweets from different companies and recruiters. Check the links that take you back to more complete listings and job descriptions that fit your criteria and for which you can apply. You can also click the names of the persons or companies to see what else they've posted or will post in the future that might be relevant to you.

Follow the leaders in your industry and keep lists. To connect with someone on LinkedIn you both have to agree, but on Twitter you can follow absolutely anyone, without asking for their permission (this of course if you are not abusive or harassing the person, in which case they can block you). If you know which companies you want to work for start following them on Twitter; do the same with the recruiters and hiring managers in those companies, with the people of influence, those you admire and are recognized professionals in your fields of interest. Thanks to Twitter's list building function you can store this information creating your own lists of companies, people, recruiters and naming them accordingly. When you call up any of these lists you see a stream of tweets from everyone in that list which is great for you to always stay updated with the latest in your industry.

Market yourself – but be careful. Share your achievements on Twitter, talk about things you want to learn or things others would like to know about your field, tweet about networking events, re-tweet a great post you've read – be of help to others. By following the latest in your industry you are also building your knowledge, extending your views and adding value to your own personal brand, attracting the attention of others to join your network.

When you put something on the Internet it stays there forever – you should always keep this in mind, and especially when job searching. Avoid controversial topics (anything you wouldn't say on a job interview, or to your mother?) because you don't know how sensitive your next employer is about your recent religious or political tweets.